DirecTV reported a 21 percent increase in its earnings on Thursday, as the nation's largest satellite TV operator saw its second-largest quarterly gain in subscribers in a decade.
The El Segundo, Calif.-based company said it added a net of 611,000 subscribers between January and March. That comes on the heels of the fourth quarter net gain of 667,000 subscribers.
Most of those new subscribers are associated with DirecTV's Latin American business, but the company said it added 184,000 new customers in the U.S., and ended March with 19.4 million domestic customers — holding its second-place position behind Comcast.
Overall, net income rose to $674 million, or 85 cents per share, compared to $558 million, or 59 cents per share, last year.
